Page 66 of Fixation of the Mind

We got to the hostess stand, waiting for a little blonde woman to stop talking to a gorgeous tan man in a waiter outfit. With his white button down clinging to his lean, muscular body, the sleeves rolled up and a few buttons left open, he had to be some kind of model. His dark brown hair looked like it was the perfect kind to hang onto. I didn't know men like this lived in the wild doing regular people's jobs.

Cin cleared her throat, and he turned his attention on us, giving us a hundred-watt smile. “Oh, I'm so sorry. Beautiful ladies like you should never wait.” He grabbed a couple of menus, telling the blonde that he would take us to our table.

“Oh my god. I think I'm in love. I could totally go for some hot-as-sin waiter dick right now.” She looked around the restaurant before pulling me down to whisper in my ear, “Do you think he’ll take me to the food critics’ vip lounge?”

With my brows pulled together, I looked at her. What the fuck was she talking about?

She giggled. “You know how the airline has the ‘mile-high club’? Just translate that for restaurants.”

My eyes flew open as I looked at his back. He was smiling at us over his shoulder. Is she talking about having sex in the bathroom? It wasn’t like I could judge, having had my own experience. Shrugging, I told her, “Go for it. I got your back.”

He took us to a secluded part of the restaurant and waved us into the booth in the back. Cin winked at me as she ran her hand along his back, purring in his ear, “Thank you. I'm so excited to fill myself up here.”

Biting my lip, I grabbed the leftover menu from his hand, whispering my thanks before sitting down and letting Cin do her thing. She giggled and flirted as I looked over the menu, finding a wine that I thought I remembered the guys having at home. When I looked up, the waiter’s chocolate eyes landed on me, heat flaring in them. I gave him a small smile before lifting the menu over my face. Yeah, I'm not interested, dude. Plus, I didn't like that he had a stunner like Cin in front of him, yet he was trying to play the field.

Still hiding behind the menu, I was reading the other items just to give Cin more time, but I was interrupted by a plop right next to me. Minty air hit my nose as the waiter looked over my shoulder, his hand resting on my inner thigh underneath the table. “Do you need any help? I can find something delicious for you to eat, just like I did for your friend.”

Scooting away from him, I shook my head. “No, I’m good. I’ll have the 2010 Pauillac to drink and—”

“Oh, so you're a wino too?!” His hand creeped up my thigh, and I crossed my legs, jostling his hand off me. “The Pauillac is so good. You have excellent taste.”

Giving him a curt nod, I glanced up at Cin, who was now glaring at the waiter. Oh shit! I rushed through the rest of my order. “And I would like to do the rack of lamb. That will be it for me.”

He leaned in, his breath assaulting my neck. “Wonderful choice. I’ll make sure they keep that lamb nice and pink for you.”

Cin winked at me before kicking the table to grab his attention. “And I will have a scotch on the rocks. Not the house shit either, the expensive stuff. Then the kobe beef strip, medium.” She grabbed my menu and shoved them toward him. “That's it. Thanks.”

He frowned down at the menus, his voice uncertain when he said, “Okay. I’ll be back with your drinks.” As soon as he disappeared, I took a breath.

“Yikes. That guy is a douche, and not the good kind.”

My head tilted. “Is there a good kind?”

She laughed, nodding like she had experience in that area. “Yes, Layrin. Yes. There is a good kind of douche, but you throw them back into the ocean after you catch them. Otherwise, it will ruin the experience for you.”

I shrugged. “I'll take your word for it.”

She rolled her eyes, folding her arms in emphasis. “Oh, honey, I’m sure that you’ll find out real soon.”

I scowled at her as she giggled over her joke at my expense. The guys weren't douches, just… overly protective and obsessive. That wasn't a douche, right?

Cin stopped laughing when the hostess came by with our drinks, telling us it was on the house thanks to our waiter. What?! There was no way I was going to let that happen. I grabbed my purse and got up, using the excuse of needing the bathroom.

Going toward the back, I saw our waiter and walked straight up to him. “Hey, we don't need our drinks to be paid for. Also, please put the bill on this card. I don't want my friend to pay.”

Handing him the card, I turned around, done with what I had to say. My eyes went wide as I felt a set of hands circle my waist. I tried to shake them off, but the grip tightened. “A pretty lady like you should never have to pay for her drinks.” I grimaced at him, did that shit really work on others? “I'm an attractive guy, and you’ve got dynamite eyes that I fell for the instant you walked in. How’d you like to have a kid that looked like me but with your eyes? They would rule the world.”

I gagged. He reminded me of a hot version of Finn, and the same sickening feeling lurched in the pit of my stomach as I got ready to use one of Roux’s moves on him. I shifted my weight to stomp his foot, but his arms disappeared before I had my chance to make my move. I turned around to see Ravi. Well, it was Ravi in a baseball cap, face mask, and baggy black clothes. His whole body vibrating with a fury I've never seen.

He waved his finger in front of my face, his eyes swirling with death and destruction. “Rin, that is a big no no. Guys touching you is punishable by death, and you don't want that, right?”

I tried to look around, wondering where the waiter had gone, but Ravi’s hand captured my chin, forcing me to focus only on him. He took a step closer, our lips separated by nothing more than the thin cloth mask. His whole body shook as he leaned into me, causing me to step back into the wall. “I think it's time to go home, my love. I’m barely keeping myself together at the moment, and the thin line I’m treading could go either way.”

“Either way?”

The side of the mask lifted up, his head resting on mine. “I’m close to either fucking you against this wall to show everyone you’re ours, or throwing you over my shoulder to take you home after I burn this place to the ground.”

“Ravi! What the fuck?! Those can't be the only options. Where is he?”

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